STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:
NPR's Ruth Sherlock is in Rome. Hi there, Ruth.
RUTH SHERLOCK, BYLINE: Hi. Good morning.
INSKEEP: What are you hearing from people in St. Peter's Square?
SHERLOCK: There's real emotion and a sense of loss. You know, many were in tears at the rosary prayers last night. But, Steve, people are also talking about Francis' legacy, about what he stood for in his 12 years as pope. This is Ruth Angeletti (ph) from Montana.
RUTH ANGELETTI: His concern for others and the world, the environment, the concern for other people and trying to set an example.
SHERLOCK: Part of that example was to his own church. Francis famously derided the wealth and the lace and the frills that come with the papacy. He'd wear simpler outfits. He kept his plastic watch, traveled in a small Fiat car, promoting this idea of a less ornate, gold-laden church. And then he was also an advocate for migrants and the environment and seen as being friendlier to the LGBTQ faithful. He's been accused, though, of not making substantial enough changes to the church. Here's Ian Kilroy (ph) from Ireland.
IAN KILROY: I think Francis was too radical for the conservatives in the church and not radical enough for the reformers in the church. But certainly, his impulse was towards reform within Catholicism, and he will be remembered for that.
SHERLOCK: So even among regular people, you can kind of see the debates taking shape on what his future legacy might be.
INSKEEP: Yeah, it's been fascinating to reflect on how much he changed the tone of the church without changing the underlying rules of the church.
SHERLOCK: Yeah, exactly.
INSKEEP: And now we go on to the funeral and a selection. What are you hearing about the next few days?
SHERLOCK: His body will be moved to St. Peter's Basilica where people could come to see him from Wednesday. Previous popes were placed in these three nested coffins standing on an elevated bier for the public viewing. But Francis has ordered that he'll be put in a single wooden coffin, and it's going to be positioned facing the church pews. His funeral will be Saturday. Of course, many people will come from all around the world, including President Trump.
INSKEEP: And then what about the conclave that comes after?
SHERLOCK: Well, it's the largest conclave in history. Pope Francis has appointed 108 of the 135 cardinals who can vote in the conclave. Here's Austen Ivereigh, Pope Francis' biographer.
AUSTEN IVEREIGH: He's appointed so many cardinals who are from far-flung places, often with very small Catholic populations, who are on the frontier of interreligious dialogue or war or suffering - anyway, the realities of the world, so that they bring those realities into the room.
SHERLOCK: So even if Francis chooses cardinals with a similar outlook, experts say many will still differ in view on some of the huge range of issues, and there's really no guarantee that the conclave will choose a more liberal pope like Francis.
INSKEEP: Yeah, it's a fascinating choice to be watching. NPR's Ruth Sherlock. Thanks so much.
SHERLOCK: Thank you. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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